A Summer at Sampson
by mamawmccall
Summary: "'You're just not exactly what I was expecting is all." She huffed, brushing back a fallen strand of hair behind her ear. She itched to make a comment on the ridiculousness of his shirt- a superfluous font spelling out Fish Face with a cartoon bass swimming below it." Or Au where Percy and Annabeth coach on swim team and annoy each other greatly. Ft. speedoes and a kid named Linus
Sampson Swim and Tennis Club was Earth's equivalent to Elysium itself for Annabeth Chase. Slight exaggeration, yes, but the club was still pretty great in and of itself. Five large pavilions placed throughout the grounds, a full-sized playground, and a spacious expanse of green lawn for kids to lounge around established Sampson as the place to be during Virginia's scorching summer months. But the cherry to top it all off? Sampson's undefeated swim team of 30 years.

Annabeth Chase has many things to be proud of her- her intelligence, confidence, athleticism- but nothing quite compares to the delight that consumes her every time they tack another year onto the banner placed at the front of the pool deck. You haven't experienced summer swim until you've swam with the Riptides- every day of the week begins with a two hour practice in the pool filled to the brim with kids of all ages and sizes, a majority having known each other since they were kids. The kids at Sampson don't hesitate to push themselves, a factor that has finished them out on top at the end of each season. Chiron Brunner, the club's manager and head coach, was loved throughout the club, possessing the ability to conjure up the motivation needed for a 7 year old to finish one lap of Freestyle or a 16 year old complaining about a 100 IM.

Annabeth had been going to Sampson since she was 7 years old. Her parents had divorced, her mother winning custody. But when Athena's architecture firm expanded, she found trouble finding time for her only daughter now that she wasn't at school during the day, thus beginning the summer visits to Annabeth's godfather Chiron Brunner. After her first day there Annabeth knew she hated it. She nearly ran all the way back home when she learned about the swim team Chiron had signed her up for. She had entered the pool that day, freezing and as angry as a soon to be 2nd grader possibly could be, and had the best time of her life. The other kids in her lane turned out to be just as clueless as she was, her now best friend Thalia had choked at least four times, her brother Jason seven. A small redhead named Rachel had flipped over on her kick board at least three times. Another boy, Luke, had swam straight into the wall and the best apart about it was that their coaches always kept a smile on their face. They kept on track and helped the kids excel in their newly forming techniques, but did it all while making the kids completely comfortable with their fairly obvious blunders. Annabeth grew to adore her lane coaches and couldn't wait for the day she'd get to be one- and today was that day.

* * *

Laying out the lounge chairs, setting umbrellas up, and hosing down the deck had helped to calm down anxious Annabeth incredibly. The early sunrise peeking over the trees position across the pool deck just reminded Annabeth of the day to come- her previous excitement now boiling down to unfamiliar nervousness. She'd been waiting for this day since she was a kid, the idea of getting to be at her favorite place in the world all day _and_ get paid? Nothing could go wrong.

Annabeth had been begging Chiron for weeks to consider her partner "suggestions" but every time he'd turn to her- rational composure and all- and would simply remind her that he couldn't give special treatment and that she should _'Take what life throws your way, most of the time there's something there you'd never think to look for'_ Ugh. She loved Chiron, she really did, but she didn't know if she could handle another philosophical pep talk.

Annabeth was sitting on a chair adjacent to the canteen's counter surrounded by fourteen of her new co-workers, all decked out in their bright red lifeguard suits. The group of teens chattered excitingly, something that usually would've been hard to believe being that it was 8:00 in the morning during summer break. But the anticipation was clear, everyone eagerly awaiting their lane assignments that would dictate who they'd be spending their mornings with every day for the next month and a half.

Annabeth's best friend Thalia Grace sat to her right, looking unimpressed as always. This was Thalia's third year coaching, preventing her from getting caught up in the excitement of the first years. Her spiky black hair somehow seemed a shade darker in the morning light, coordinating perfectly with her dark nail color. Her brother, Jason Grace, held a terrified expression, having made the mistake of reading up on drownings caused by a "careless eye" the night before. Piper McLean sat next to him, attempting to console his paranoid thoughts. Loud laughs echoed from where the Stoll brothers sat, unashamedly teasing Katie Gardener. Will Solace rested his chin in his hand on the counter, recounting the band-aids in the first aid kit for the third time. Reyna Ramirez-Arrellano, no doubt Sampson's most cutthroat lifeguard, sat talking with Rachel Dare who adorned a butterfly barrette and a graphite mark on her chin. Then there was Luke.

Luke Castellan was somewhat of a celebrity at the club, having nearly won as many awards as the club's personal legend, but of course Luke could never beat those numbers, no one had for 17 years. Nonetheless, he had been a key player in helping the Riptides beat their arch rival, Braemar, for the past few summers. He was also strikingly handsome, charming as hell, and the source of Annabeth's three year infatuation.

Then there in the corner talking to Grover and some of the other groundskeepers was Percy freakin' Jackson. Just to be clear, Annabeth didn't _hate_ Percy, he just simply irritated the hell out of her. She'd never say it out loud, but he was probably one of the best swimmers she'd ever seen. The way he glided through the water was nothing short of a breathtaking sight. His technique wasn't much, not nearly as refined as others on the team, but he nearly doubled that in natural ability. It was like the water responded to Percy's presence, like he had something of a personal connection to it. During practice, he'd easily pass to the front of the line, having made it into Chiron's group of older kids his first summer there when he was 12. Which was what made her so angry. He obviously had an incredible gift all competitive swimmers only dreamed of and yet he'd always avoided reaching his greatest potential. There'd been numerous times he'd very clearly throw a race at a meet, slowing down in the final stretch and settling for second place. The only times he'd ever gotten first were at meets against Braemar when the stakes were too high to settle for anything less than his best.

Annabeth had tried several times to befriend him, maybe gets some tips on how to improve, but every time she tried he'd just shoot her down with minimal eye contact and a mumbled half-response. They went to the same high school, but that didn't exactly give her much help, they hadn't had a full conversation since they were 13.

Chiron's arrival only heightened the anticipation surrounding Annabeth, a smirk licking across his lips in amusement. "Good morning, Riptides!"A hushed grumble of g'mornins sounded off in response.

Chiron made his way in front of the counter, only a few inches from where Annabeth sat. He winked to her before removing his sea green clipboard, he'd had that damned thing for as long as Annabeth could remember. When she was younger she used to steal it from his desk and walk around the grounds with it, making it known to all that she had taken hold of the untouchable relic. Now, years later, the slightly cracked plastic rested in Chiron's aged hands holding a stack of papers with their assignments.

"I will be passing around the-" Chiron was interrupted by whoops from the back, no doubt the impatient Stolls who were quickly silenced by Katie and Rachel. "...assignments! Please just take a minute to check your lane number and partner so I can post it onto the bulletin."

Annabeth felt her heart quicken when Chiron handed the clipboard over to Luke. Within seconds he was swarmed by the crowd of eager teens. Thalia had made it there first, immediately suppressing a grin when she discovered her partner was Luke. "Don't worry, I'll chat you up." She whispered to Annabeth who smiled back timidly, feeling her stomach drop a little bit at the knowledge that she wouldn't get to be as close to Luke this summer.

But as quickly as the frown rested over her face, a reassuring smile soon replaced it. Annabeth still had _plenty_ of friends she could be paired up with. Piper was looking for her name now, surely Chiron had considered at least one of her requests. Piper retracted herself from Luke's side with a knowing smirk- yes! Thank gods, Chiron didn't disappoint.

Annabeth tried looking at the board for clarification before it was snatched up by Katie. So she relied back to her good friend. "Piper! Whose your-"

"Pipes!" said Jason excitedly, striding up next to a now blushing Piper. "We're in Lane 2 together!" Annabeth didn't even try to hide her disappointment, sighing mournfully as Piper sent her as regretful a glance she could after being paired with her crush of two years.

Panic began to rise in her chest, Chiron wouldn't have just paired her up without consideration, would he? Nine years she'd been preparing for this, to be paired up with her best friends all summer- coaching and critiquing and bonding with their swimmers, playing a role in building the foundation of their swim careers (no matter how minimal). But that dream was slowly dwindling as more and more people were paired off.

Well, maybe Rachel- "Oh! I'm with Reyna!"

Dear gods, she'd even take Travis at this point.

After what seemed like a millenia, Will Solace placed the board back onto the chair and clapped his hand onto the back of a sorrowful Connor who'd learnt his brother had been paired up with Katie Gardener. Although he was taking the news far better than Katie herself who was currently pacing in exasperation, her arms flailing wildly out as she instructed Travis on what behavior was expected of him. "If I see even one super soaker..."

Annabeth blocked the girl out as she finally took hold of the heap of plastic resting on the chair. Her hands shook involuntarily as she tried her best to keep her frustration at bay. Her eyes scrolled down the typed names until she found her name under Lane 4. It read **A. Chase** and to the right of it... **P. Jackson.**

Annabeth tried her very best to keep conceal her disappointment, but it became nearly impossible when her new partner showed up. She took note of someone uncomfortably clearing their throat right in front of her- Percy Jackson. He stood there with his hand out, still unsure of his assignment.

"There's no need, we're together." Annabeth really tried not to sound so resentful, but telling by the irked twitch of his lips, she hadn't succeeded.

"Already writing me off, I see." She could tell she'd hurt his feelings and she was considering apologizing until he rolled his eyes.

"You're just not exactly what I was expecting is all." She huffed, brushing back a fallen strand of hair behind her ear. She itched to make a comment on the ridiculousness of his shirt- a superfluous font spelling out _Fish Face_ with a cartoon bass swimming below it.

Percy took a deep breath briefly before turning back towards his friends. Halfway there he stopped and turned back, casting a glance towards Annabeth and said, "I'll see you out there, then."

* * *

As soon as Chiron retreated back into his private office, Annabeth cornered him, questioning (more like demanding) why she'd been paired up with a kid she'd made more than obvious she _doesn't_ like. "I mean, we've barely ever talked Chiron and you want us to coach together!"

"Annabeth, Percy's an extremely talented young man, I figured you'd enjoy being paired up with someone like him. It might even make your job coaching easier." Chiron searched flippantly through his top drawers, most likely searching for his commonly misplaced whistle.

"He's only good at swimming from pure luck, you can't just teach that to kids!" Chiron was obviously not changing his mind anytime soon, a fact that began manifesting itself into an unquenchable disgruntlement within Annabeth.

Chiron attempted to jerk open another one of his drawers, it slid open halfway before halting. "I realize this may be a challenge, Annabeth, but if anyone can figure out how to translate something as useful as Percy's swimming into something beneficial, it's you."

She shrugged wordlessly. "I mean, I guess."

He bent at the knees and fished his hand into the minimal space still jammed into his desk. "I'm sorry you didn't get the partner you expected, but I really do believe you'll still have a great partnership with Percy. You might not be friends now, but you're both hard workers, I'm sure it'll all be fine."

Annabeth smiled softly as his hand reappeared from the desk, neon yellow whistle in hand, "I'm sure you're right."

Chiron wasn't right.

30 minutes later, the swimmers and their families slowly began trickling into pool area. Chiron stood at the front gate, arms spread wide as his booming voice directed them towards the bulletin board listing off where they should go. Annabeth stripped off her t-shirt and retrieved her sunglasses before striding over to Lane 4 with the assigned exercises for the day.

She nodded solemnly to Thalia standing in front of the lane next to her, four of her swimmers already stood before her, latex caps in hand. Annabeth took her place in front of the pool and waited, pushing down her feelings of irritation that Percy hadn't made his way over yet. Within a few moments, a young girl marched into position before Annabeth. Her dark curly hair equated her dark brown skin.

"My name is Maycee!" The young girl proclaimed proudly. Annabeth took note of the girl' missing front tooth and grinned.

"Hello, I'm Annabeth, I'll be one of your coaches this season." She squatted down next to the girl who held a latex cap and newly purchased swim goggles. "Do you need help putting that on?"

Maycee nodded quickly before placing the cap in Annabeth's hands. Annabeth dipped it swiftly into the water before stretching it over Maycee's bun. She glanced to the right of her to find a small boy eyeing her suspiciously, as if she were only there to throw the kids into the water when they least expected.

"Hey Linus!" Maycee exclaimed, eyes wide in excitement at learning one of her friends was in her lane.

"Morning Maycee." Linus sighed, calculating eyes still not leaving Annabeth. He conspicuously leaned toward the young girl and whisper-shouted, "I won't be the only boy, right?"

Annabeth offered a genuine smile to the boy before another voice rang out. "Don't worry, you've got me, kid. Linus, right?" Percy smirked as the younger boy's eyes lit up in relief.

Four more girls and two more boys graced their presence before practice finally began, all the while Annabeth and Percy stood seemingly avoiding their inevitable interaction. She smiled stiffly to him as the kids all hopped into the pool. "Sorry if I was being cold earlier, I just want to focus on helping the kids improve, okay? No hard feelings?"

Percy looked pleased with her apology. "Yeah, we're good."

Annabeth slid into the chilled water before introducing herself and Percy. Chiron was starting the kids out fairly easy for the first week, merely warm-up exercises if anything. They kick-started the practice with two laps of freestyle kicks using kick-boards. One of their more experienced swimmers, Jordan, blew past to the front in his first lap. A fact he seemed adamant on reminding everyone. Annabeth and Percy didn't conflict as much as she assumed they would, although they didn't really speak much. They both stood on opposite ends of the lanes guiding the kids along, correcting any mistakes they took note of. It continued on similar to this for the next hour until the clock struck 10 and they switched into the deep end for the half of practice the younger kids anticipated.

The deep end was split into four lanes, each lane being taken up by two groups. Most of the second half for the younger swims consisted of races and shorter exercises- the deep end was only around 20 feet anyhow and not much could be completed in the small space. Annabeth and Percy's lane were combined with Thalia and Luke. As Annabeth made her way over, she caught a glare of bright blonde hair in the corner of her eye. Her face immediately reddened- something she blamed on the already scorching morning sun- and her stomach erupted in butterflies.

"You ready for your swimmers to get crushed, Chase?" Luke inquired, eyebrow raised mischievously.

Annabeth bit her lip, trying her best to contain her giddy smile. " _Obviously_ you haven't witnessed my little Tabby demolish her competitors in butterfly."

Luke's laugh rang in Annabeth's ear, setting off another avalanche of blushes and butterflies. "Well, I'm definitely looking forward to witnessing that."

She waved to him as he retreated over towards Thalia on the other side of the pool. By the time Annabeth made it to her end, their swimmers were already huddled around Percy, energy level clearly raised. "Hey! We racing?" She questioned. Percy stood straight up again and smirked- she noticed he did that a lot.

"Yep, I've already organized them." Before Annabeth could respond, Tabby sounded out her excitement in a guttural scream proclaiming their impending victory. The kids surrounding her raised their small fists in approval. Annabeth faced Percy and immediately they both burst into a fit of laughter. They had surely received the eccentric bunch.

The kids all lined up according to the strokes they were going to be swimming as her and Percy stood off to the side. Thalia screamed for the first swimmers to take their mark. Little Linus from earlier snapped his goggles into place before bending into position. With a swift blow of her whistle, the kids were off. Back and forth, they swam the four assigned strokes within the Individual Medley. Each kid on their team looking even prouder as they made it to the wall before their competitors. Quickly it dwindled down until it was solely Jordan (the supposed freestyle all-star) launching into the water. Annabeth beamed with pride as Jordan shifted through the water with ease- well, as much ease as an 8 year old can hold- and grazed his hand across the tile, declaring their lane as the winners.

The kids erupted into cheers and Percy even offered Annabeth a prideful high-five. He turned to the kids positively beaming, a sight that took Annabeth's breath away momentarily. His innocent happiness as such a simple thing radiated warmth throughout Annabeth- a fact she wasn't entirely sure what to do with in the moment. Maycee and Tabby led the excitement of the group, until Thalia called for a rematch and a new found determination gleamed in their elementary eyes. They continued on with the relays, mixing and matching with different strokes, taking in the fun of the first day before they had to revert back to the more diligent practices. Once 11 o'clock rang and the kids exited the pool, Annabeth smiled to herself.

"That was actually pretty great." Percy sounded off close behind her, sounding more like he was clarifying the statement to himself.

"Yeah, we got pretty lucky. Our swimmers are some of the best in their age group." Annabeth examined, their times surely spoke for themselves.

Percy laughed. "Yeah, and also the loudest." Annabeth let herself smile, feeling suddenly ashamed for assuming working with Percy would be an utterly terrible thing to endure.

"I actually wanted to talk to you about Jordan, actually." She stopped suddenly, wanting Percy's full attention for her suggestion.

He threw his towel over his shoulder before responding,"Yeah, what about him?"

"I was thinking about showing him some faster breathing techniques and arm stokes that could reduce his time." Percy looked to her quizzically.

"Don't you think that's a bit much? I mean the kid's already great, there's no need to push all that on him." Annabeth felt as if a switch had clicked back on in her head screaming: _slacker! slacker!_

"Well, yeah, but there's always room for improvement. He's got great potential." She added, biting her lip as if it would somehow keep her frustration at bay.

Percy frowned. "Annabeth, he's _eight_."

"Well, it's good to start good habits young!" She protested, hands wringing furiously into her towel.

His eyes widened in annoyance."You don't need to get defensive."

"I'm only being defensive, because you're not taking any of this seriously." She pursed her lips, awaiting a response, but he simply furrowed his eyebrows and stalked off. She waited a few moments before continuing on her way. This had ended exactly like she'd predicted it. Percy not knowing when to step in and make _good_ even _better_. How was she meant to work with a kid who wasn't even willing to push himself, let alone a whole group of swimmers? She ran her hands through her hair, pinning it up as she continued to huff in exasperation.

 _Percy freakin' Jackson._


End file.
